The spark of Revolution
by Rand0m5tuff
Summary: In the Aftermath of EW2, the Autoctratic Easteuropan Imperial Alliance slowly began to crumble. Uprisings in some provinces, that wanted independence, got shot down and resulted in smaller to larger civil wars...
1. Chapter 1

March 20 1938, Helziech, Fhirald

Zach was sitting in front of his desk, writing something in a book. He scratched the back of his head thinking about a good sentence to end it, when suddenly the door was opened. "Mr. Merlicher, your wife wants to know, when you will be ready for dinner." , Jeremiah, his servant, said. "Tell her, that i will come in a few moments.", Zach replied.

November 26 1935, somewhere on the border of Fhirald

Gurian was patroulling through the woods, his rifle hung from his shoulder. He was humming a melody and looked around from time to time. It was a quiet and cold night. Gurian was glad that his superiors allowed him to wear an additional jacket. "Why do i even have to walk around here? It's not like any Federation Soldier will pop out of nowhere. The front is miles away, this is just a waste of time." he thought. The exact same thoughts he has had yesterday and the exact same thoughts he will have tomorrow. He began wondering what he will have for breakfast once he comes home, when he suddenly heard a sound coming from the bushes next to him. He pointed the muzzle of his rifle at the bush. "Dont move or ill shoot!", he shouted. He took a few steps behind. "Come out and put your hands where i can see them." Gurian tried to sound as intimidating as possible. A man walked out. The man hadnt shaved in a while, resulting in his face being covered by a beard. A skull of an animal, probably a deer, garnished his right shoulder, his right hand was covered in a glove and a sword hung from the left side of his belt. "Put the gun down, you dont want to shoot me.", the man said softly. Gurian stared him in the eyes, the rifle still pointed at him. The man took a step forward. "Stop right there or i will shoot! I mean it!", Gurian shouted. He noticed, that his hands were shaking. The man seemed to notice that too and he took another step forward. "Last warning!" Gurians hands began to shake even harder. The man seemed to ignore him. He walked forward again and then reached towards his gun. He grabbed the gun by the barrel and took it out of Gurians hands. The man mustered Gurian. "How old are you?", he asked. Gurian gulped. He then answered the mans question: "Ni-Nineteen." The man looked at him. "Nineteen, huh. Whats your name kid?" "Gurian Halter…" The man hung the gun over his shoulder. "Well, listen Gurian. Go home, quit your military service, desert if you cant do that and prepare yourself. The times are changing and the Reign of the empire will fall, sooner or later.", the man said. He then walked past Gurian. Gurian turned around. The man was already a few meters away. Gurian followed him. "And who are you?", he asked the man. The man stopped. "You prabably have heard of me…" Then he turned around. "But to answer your question: My name is Jaeger. Radi Jaeger."


	2. Chapter 2

March 19 1938, Helziech, Fhirald

Zach was going through the manuscript. He had done a lot of work in the past few weeks.

Currently the chapters covered all the events from the 8th of January 1936 to the 31 of

September 1937. Now the only thing left were the events from October 1937. This would

take a while, and he psychically prepared himself for another night of work. He took another

sip of his glass and began to write.

November 29 1935, Itterberg, Fhirald

Gurian was still shocked from last night. Even though he had strict orders to let anyone through, he had allowed Gener- Radi Jaeger, he wasnt a General anymore, to pass the border. And now said man was sitting in the "Pour House", the bar of his brother Brian and entertained the customers. Suddenly his thoughts got interrupted by the latter. "Youre not a horse, you know…" "What do you mean?" asked Gurian. "Youre making a long face again. Whats the matter?" his brother asked. "It...Its nothing. I was just thinking again…" "Well then, i cant force you to tell me." Brian said. "Anyways, good thing that you brought him here. He helps the business. Everyone wants to buy him a beer. I might ask Pa if we can keep him…" "Hes not a dog. It doesnt work that way." Gurian said, chuckling. "I know. I think about closing the bar earlier to give him some rest. From the looks of it he walked all the way here… i cant imagine how much he would miss a bath." Brian said while he cleaned a glass. Gurian knew, that he kept a few dirty glasses under the counter to give the impression, that he was always busy. Which was far from reality. The bar didnt go that well, normally he had three customers at most. "Didnt you hear me?" "Huh?" Gurian asked. "I asked you, when you have to go back to the outpost." Brian said. "Oh. Thanks, nearly forgot that. Bye, ill be back in the morning." Gurian said while he ran towards the door, nearly tripping over a stool lying on the floor.

Gurian nearly came too late. Only two minutes later and he would have had to take another shift. He greeted the guard at the door with a nod, the guard nodded as response while he opened the door. Gurian ran towards the commanders office, nearly running into an NCO on the way. He stood there and knocked. He waited two seconds and came in. "Punctual on the second." Captain Gengl said as he closed his pocket watch. "Anything unusual today?" "Not really. I did see a deer, but it ran away." Gurian said. He did meet Gen- Mr. Jaeger, but it would probably be better, if he didnt tell the Captain about it. "Hm. Good. That will be all for today. You may go home now. Oh, i nearly forgot to tell you. Tomorrow no second jacket. With the disappearance of General Jaeger the Capitol is worried that he might come back and starts trouble. Thats why they sent an officer alongside two regiments. Starting tomorrow, all of us answer to him." Captain Gengl said. Gurian gulped. "Why would they think that? He fought for the Empire during the war…" Gangl put his glasses down. "He was responsible for trouble before. The capitol ist just cautious. They learned their lesson, not to underestimate this country and its people." Gurian gulped again. He had the feeling, that something was about to happen in the next few months...


	3. Chapter 3

March 17 1938, Helziech, Fhirald

Zach put his pen down. He looked at the clock on the wall. "Dear Valkyrur, its already 2 am!" He shook his head, laughing. He had a tendency to get carried away when he was writing, but this was new. "Well, thats enough, i guess. I think i will spend some time with Monica for the next two days…" he said. He yawned while he looked at the last sentence he had written. "The sacrifice of Sergeant Torni during the battle of Itterberg would help the besieged troops to hold their ground against the Imperial Army."

September 30 1935, Itterberg, Fhirald

Gurian walked towards his brothers bar, the bag with the bottles hung over his left shoulder. As he opened the door and entered, he noticed a crowd sitting at a table in the corner. Probably some men listening to stories from Gen- Mr. Jaeger. He was still used to refering to him with his rank, even though he deserted. Brian was busy with a customer, so Gurian decided to sit at a table and wait. He began to think about what the Captain had told him. The capitol sent someone as the commander of the whole province. That could only mean, that something bad was about to happen. Gurian looked at Jaeger again. Was this man really that much of a threat, that the capitol had to send troops to secure the province? He certainly didnt look that dangerous as he sat there, men that listened to his words as if they were oxygen around him…

Eventually the customer got his desired drink and joined the crowd in the corner. Gurian brought to bag to the counter. "Now that its more alive then ever, Pa has trouble with keeping up with the pace…" he said. "Sure seems like that. Thank the Valkyrur for Pa and his secret brewing equipment." Brian said, chuckling. "You know, i could help him with it. After all, he doesnt get younger…" "He knows that. He doesnt ask for help because he knows how busy you are with the bar. Some of neighbours help him, but the beer still goes out faster than they can brew new one…" Gurian replied. "Yeah. Beer. Comes in yellow, goes out yellow. Whats the point in drinking it anyways?" his brother said with a grin. "Ugh, just take the beer and shut up, ok? Im not in the mood for jokes…" "Ok then. Tell Pa how grateful i am for all this." "Tell him yourself. Im gonna head to the base now. The captain expects me." He didnt, but Gurian needed an excuse to leave. "Alrighty then. Have fun freezing your balls off." Brian said as Gurian walked to the door. Gurian began to head towards the base. While he walked on the road, he looked to left. The old factory was still active, reparing the tanks and other equipment and producing weapons and ammunition. He wondered how long it would continue to do so. After it was out of his sight, he faced to road again. In the distance there where some lights to be seen. They seemed to come nearer, probably a car. Gurian went to the side, just two minutes later the car passed him, followed by two trucks. "Strange." he thought, "Why would there be trucks heading towards the city?" He decided to leave it be and continued walking...


	4. Chapter 4

March 2 1938, Helziech, Fhirald

Zach was watching some of footage of the Siege of Castle Itterberg. "Incredible how Captain Gengl managed to hold out for three weeks.", he said, as the camera faced the wrecks of destroyed imperial field guns. Some some soldiers of the Front for a free Fhirald posed with the flag of the Empire, some of them were searching a pile of weapons for trophies. The cameraman was a complete amateur, that was clear. The camera didnt stop to shake and he turned too fast. Zach regretted not being there to film proper material. He took a sip of his tea and continued to write.

December 12 1935, outskirts of Itterberg, Fhirald

Gurian was patrolling again. The officer from the capitol, Lieutenant General Stiggler, had arrived earlier expected. Nearly two weeks had passed since his arrival and he had already made several changes. Three Patrols on the border per day, two in the city, every fourth day the guards had to exercise. And worst of all, guards werent allowed to leave the base except for patrols. To ensure that the guards didnt go anywhere they werent allowed to, every patrol consisted of two soldiers and an officer of the Imperial Army. The capitol sure seemed to be afraid of what Jaeger could do…

He looked to the left towards the other soldier. He was chewing on something. The other soldier noticed his gaze and offered him what appeared to be thinly sliced, dried meat. "Thanks!", he said. He then began chew on the meat, which had a salty taste. "Hey, you two, what are you doing over there?" the officer behind them wanted to know. "I offered Private Halter some meat. He seemed hungry and i had a piece left." the soldier next to him said. The officer said something Gurian couldnt understand. Silent, they continued the patrol.

When Gurian left the base, one of the patrols assigned to the city was kind enough to give him a ride. They let him out near the "Pour House". Gurian thanked them and entered the bar. It was quite empty, only two people were sitting at the counter. "Hey, Brian, where are the customers? Shouldnt there be dozens of them sitting with Jaeger in the corner?" Gurian said. "Theyre sitting the in the backyard. Its too risky, if one of the patrols find him here, ill be screwed…" Brian answered. Fair enough. Sheltering deserter could get Brian executed for treadon. "Anyways, may i speak with him?" "I cant forbid you to speak with him. Im just a barkeeper, not your superior…" Gurian ignored him and walked into the backyard. There werent that many customers as there normally were. Just eight, maybe nine, he guessed. Some of them werent even sitting with Jaeger. Gurian walked to the table he was and sat down. It seemed like Jaeger had finished a story, right now he was taking a sip of his drink, presumably tea with rum, the "speciality of the house". Gurian never understood what was so special about it. It was just ordinary tea with ordinary rum. "Oh, Gurian, i didnt think you would grace us with your presence so soon. Your brother told me you would be busy patrolling around." Jaeger said. "Every guard can only be part of one group per day, Gen- Mr. Jaeger. Lieutenant General Stiggler made some changes recently." Gurian replied. "Stiggler… hm… that name sounds familiar. He was one of the that served under Gregor during war against the empire. Smart of them to send someone that knows the terrain… that could be a problem…""Problem? Why would it be a problem?" Gurian asked. "Because i plan to free this country. I served under Prince Maximilian because i thought that he would support me. But since Maximilian died, theres no one to support my cause. Ive learned that we cant defeat the Empire on long terms after the first war. But we can make it too annoying andmore trouble than its worth to conquer us. By avoiding to face them on open fields and by using Guerilla-warfare, we could have a chance. But if our opponent knows the terrain… that could be an obstacle." "I think i dont understand Mr. Jaeger. This sounds like you plan a revolution…" Gurian said. "Thats exactly what im doing. Our country was long enough under the rule of the Empire. Wether will be set peacefully or if there is going to be blood, its for the Empire to decide…"


	5. Chapter 5

February 28 1938, Itterberg, Fhirald

Zach prepared everything for the interview. He put the teapot on the heater and ran towards the fireplace and put two logs into it. He was extremely nervous, it didnt happen everyday that he gets the chance to talk to a survivor of the Battle of Itterberg. He had rented a small shed near the forest for a few days, unfortunatly Josef Gengl could meet him in his house in Helziech. Suddenly there was a knock on the door. He quickly ran towards it. "Oh, Mr. Gengl, thank you for coming, it is a pleasure to see you again. How are the kids?" Zach said, while he helped him to come in.

December 20 1935, border of the Province of Fhirald

Otto looked through his binoculars. The road seemed to split at the end of the pass. He looked at the map. "Ok, looks like we have to go to the right." He yelled down the cuppola, hoping that the driver could hear him. The driver answered but Otto couldnt understand him due to the noises of the engine, but since his vehicle began to move the driver was able to understand him, he assumed. The hatch next to him opened and his loader, Corporal Witters popped out. "Fucking heat in there. How much further to this base, im all sweaty and i need to change…" he said. "Not much. Just down at the right, through the forest and then we should be there. How is Kurt?" Otto replied, pointing on the position of the map. "Eh. He sleeps. Seems ok. Should be well done by now though. I dont check on him every two minutes, im not his nanny." The thought of his gunner being cooked like a steak made Otto laugh. He turned around to see if the other tanks had catched up yet. One of them was following Ottos tank, but the others were still a few houndred meters behind. Probably a problem with the running gear or the transmission.

Otto gave the order to stop and climbed down into his vehicle. He started the radio and put it on the right frequence. "Ace-of-clubs here, please report everyone." "King-of-Spades reporting, nothing unusual." "Jack-of-Hearts here, the running gear got stuck." "Here Joker, waiting for Queen-of-Diamonds to continue driving." "Queen-of-Hearts, were standing behind Jack-of-Hearts." "Ok, were heading towards the base, drive to the right and you should reach it." Otto shut the radio off.

Running gear, just as expected. He climbed into the cupola so that his torso was outside of the tank. "They got stuck in the mud, two of them have to wait." he said to Corporal Witters. "Oh, come on, not again. Which one is it? Jack-of-Hearts again?" "Sure as hell is. Were leaving them behind for now. Cant do any good here, might as well get our asses into some more pleasant place. Maybe we should convert one of our tanks to pull the others out…" Otto replied. "I dont think that Command allows us to take another one of their precious Heavy tanks apart for some shit nobody besides us wants use anyways. Slegdehammer and Scythe probably were too much already…" Witters shook his head. "We are responsible for the annihilation of multiple federation tanks and dozens of soldiers and the Sledgehammer still gets no respect…" "Its ok Micheal. Time will come. Anyways, lets get back inside before we freeze our ears off." Otto said. He then got inside the tank again. "Lets hurry up, its better not to keep a general waiting…"


	6. Chapter 6

February 28 1938, Itterberg, Fhirald

"They are loud and never sleep, thank you for asking." Mr. Gengl said. "But thats normal for their age." "Good to hear. When was the last time we spoke? In November?" Zach asked. "I think so. It was when Jaeger asked you to write the book, wasnt it? Speaking of which, how is it going? Did you make a lot of progress?" "I did. But lets not waste any more time with small talk. I decided to make chapters dedicated to certain persons. One of those persons would be Simon Torni. You probably knew him better than any of us…" Zach said. "I did. So, begin with your questions Zach. As you said, lets not waste time with smalltalk…" Gengl replied.

December 23 1935, Itterberg, Fhirald

Gurian sat in the "Pour House" and drank a beer. With the arrival of several tank and infantry platoons, Lieutenant General Stiggler released the soldiers from the guard duties. "Imperial soldiers with proper training can do this better than civilians in uniforms." or something like that. Meanwhile he just sat there, listening to Jaeger and a few man conspiring against the government he was supposed to protect. The worst part was, that he parcipated in such activities. Jaeger said, that he will try to set it peacefully, but if he must, he would start a civil war. Right now, he was talking to the owner of the factory, Herman Merlicher. "As i said, without proper blueprints we cant produce any tanks. We only have the blueprints for the light and medium ones, but the Empire just sent ten heavy tank platoons. So what do you expect Jaeger, that we just come up with a new design in a week? We arent tank designers, we just build and repair them!" the man said. Gurian grew tired of this. He walked towards the door to the backyard and left the building.

It was cold outside. A few people sat there, he recognized a fellow soldier at a table to the right. "Sergeant Torni." he said, greeting him with a nod. "Private Halter.", Torni replied, pointing to the seat across him to signal him that he could sit. "What are you doing here?" Gurian asked him. "The same thing everybody else does. Drinking and waiting for Jaeger to start the fight for our independence." Torni replied. "He tries to get the support of Merlicher." "I know, i heard bits and pieces. They are heaving an argument over tanks." Gurian said. "Tanks, huh? You know what would be a good idea? If we just dont use them. In this mountainous terrain full of forrests and frozen swamps, they are of no use. The same thing can be achieved by mortars, machineguns and lances." "Thats a good point, but they arent armoured. Tanks on the other hand are…" Gurian replied. "Anyways, what do you think about the…" Gurian got cut short by the door being opened. Brian walked out and said "Ok, everyone who supports the idea of a free Fhirald should come into the bar. The others… uh… do whatever you want. Except telling anyone about this." He then entered the bar again. "Well, guess we should let them wait…" Gurian said. Realizing that everyone had stood up and went towards the door, he did the same. When he was in the bar again, he was surprised how full it was. Can all of you please be quiet for the next few minutes?" someone asked. Gurian supposed it was Jaeger. "Good. Well then, i have good news.

Other groups that want our freedom garantied us their support in the upcoming fight. I will drive to Helziech with some advisors to meet with them. Together we will decide the future of our country. Then we will start to talk with representatives of the Empire. If they agree, its good. If not, we will have to fight. And i promise you, this time, we will win."


	7. Chapter 7

February 26 1938, Helziech, Fhirald

Zach was standing in front of his suitcase and packed his things. He had decided to visit a survivor from the Battle of Itterberg to ask him some questions. Due to his physical limitations caused by his injuries inflicted during the Battle of Itterberg, Mr. Gengl couldnt travel all the way to Helziech. After he was done, he left a letter for Monica and began to head out. He gave Jeremiah the keys and told him he would be back in a few days before he entered his car and drove to Itterberg.

December 30 1935, Itterberg, Fhirald

Otto was standing in garage. Corporal Styburn, his driver, was doing maintainance on the engine. After six minutes, he jumped down and cleaned his hands. "Everything alright?" Otto asked. "Mhm." Gunther never was a man of big words. "Oh, could you do me a favour and get me Michael so he can help me with the ammunition?" "Mhm…"

After Micheal arrived, they began loading the shells from the door at the back of the superstructure. Micheal stood in the vehicle and loaded them into the ammo rack while Otto took them out of the crate and handed them to Michael through the door. "May i ask a question?" "Go ahead Michael..." "Why are we here?" "A deep question. You know, people like to think that someone created us. Others say we are just a product of coincidence. Does life has a deeper purpose than just keeping our race alive? Noone knows…" Michael laughed "Nice words, but thats not what i meant. Why does command send us here?" "Oh. Yeah, that… i dont really know. Maybe to enforce the law. Nothing can enforce the law better than a tank in the middle of nowhere, dont you know?" Otto said sarcastically. "For now, lets not worry about that. Lets just load the shells into the tank.

Thirteen minutes later, they were done. Otto decided to head to their quarters. As they arrived, he took a look around. Kurt was sleeping on a bed, probably his, and Gunther was cleaning the weapon he had nicked from a federation tanker. Otto wanted to sit down, when there suddenly was a knock on the door. He went to answer it and opened the door. A soldier was standing in front of it it. "Lieutenant Carrus?" "Yes?" Otto replied. "Lieutenant General Stigglers wants to see you." "Oh. Lets not keep him waiting then, shall we?" Otto said slightly confused. He had been here for 9 days now and Stiggler sends for him now? He shrugged and followed the soldier. "Oh, Lieutenant, could i ask you for a favour?" "Sure, go ahead." "Me and my squad mates are huge fans of your… uh… work. We would really appreciate it, if you could visit sometime, if time allows it, to tell us about your battles and maybe for autographs…" "Sure, ill see what i can do." It where moments like this that weirded him out. People treated him differently just because he had destroyed a few dozen federation tanks. Sure, it had been his idea to put a heavy artillery piece into a superstructure mounted on the hull of his tank, but other than that it was purely through luck or poor tactics of the enemy. It was also pure luck that the gun was effective against enemy armour. He just wanted a tank that could blast the hell out of bunkers and trenches. The fact, that the blast of the ammunition caused the riveted armour of the enemy to just pop off was purely coincidentally… "Well, there it is. The commander already expects you…" the soldier said. Otto thanked him for showing him the way and entered the room.


End file.
